Genuine XP Disc Is Dead

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pingu

16/03/2006 at 09:15

I've a genuine copy of XP (or at least I assume it is, I paid my money and everything when I bought the PC) and the dye has come away (or been dissolved it looks like, it's really weird).

I've got the key and the barcode off the packaging so does anyone know how I go about getting another copy or if it's even possible. Am off to check MS website now but I'll no doubt get a quicker response from you guys.

Cheers

Wocka Chocka Chum

Skub:
Right that's it,thread closed. Nowt cooler than pingu.

editor

16/03/2006 at 09:25

ooh, what happened to it? Spillage?

How do you know it's kaput?

If it is questionable there's a bit on the MS site that asks you to send them said disk & details re where you bought it & I guess the implication is that they will send you another one. Never tried it.

pingu

16/03/2006 at 09:29

editor wrote

ooh, what happened to it? Spillage?

How do you know it's kaput?

If it is questionable there's a bit on the MS site that asks you to send them said disk & details re where you bought it & I guess the implication is that they will send you another one. Never tried it.

Cheers fella.
I don't know what's up with it but it's definitely completely fooshed. Put it in the drive to repair my system and it span up but then locked explorer.exe. Opened up the drive and looked at the disc and it's really weird, around the inner edge it's lost a load of the dye on an area about 2x2 cm. You can see the reverse of the printed side through the "hole".

I guess something has spilt on it but it's odd. I'll take a scoot at what you suggest!

Wocka Chocka Chum

Skub:
Right that's it,thread closed. Nowt cooler than pingu.

editor

16/03/2006 at 09:45

for mean time you could use XP system restore point.

Where did you buy the package from?

Jack

16/03/2006 at 09:50

You can safely contact MS (by phone even), explain whats happened (have disc and keycode to hand) and they will probably happily send out a new disc so long as its not an OEM one. I have done this before with genuine Win 95 & 98 discs, not had to do anything with any of my XPs, yet

http://www.freesmileys.org/smileys/smiley-fc/diablo.gif

Ride safe Ride free

pingu

16/03/2006 at 11:50

Jack wrote

You can safely contact MS (by phone even), explain whats happened (have disc and keycode to hand) and they will probably happily send out a new disc so long as its not an OEM one. I have done this before with genuine Win 95 & 98 discs, not had to do anything with any of my XPs, yet

Mmmm, it's this OEM that I've a potential difficulty with..... I paid ~£80 for XP Home genuinely assuming it was kosher, it was preinstalled on my machine but I got the associated key etc...but not the books etc....

Subsequent reading leads me to believe all is not as it seems

The machine works fine, but running AVG had thrown up a couple of errors on boot sector and somehing else. Not sure what I was planning to do would have affected anything but at the very least it has made me aware that I don't have a working copy of XP should I need one!

Thanks

Wocka Chocka Chum

Skub:
Right that's it,thread closed. Nowt cooler than pingu.

Jack

16/03/2006 at 13:02

pingu wrote

Mmmm, it's this OEM that I've a potential difficulty with..... I paid ~£80 for XP Home genuinely assuming it was kosher, it was preinstalled on my machine but I got the associated key etc...but not the books etc..../

So it is kosher (you don't get books with CDs now), its just OEM. That means that Windows was installed by the company that you brought the PC off and there is probably recovery sector on your HDD, the CD they have supplied may only be a recovery thing and not a full blown Windows CD. You have a legal key (there should be a sticker on PC/Laptop) so all is as it should be. The idea of not giving you a full disc is to more or less force you into going back to them to get stuff sorted out if it goes bang, may still be worth contacting MS and explain you've only got a recovery disc and see what they say

Ride safe Ride free

pingu

16/03/2006 at 13:08

Jack wrote

So it is kosher (you don't get books with CDs now), its just OEM. That means that Windows was installed by the company that you brought the PC off and there is probably recovery sector on your HDD, the CD they have supplied may only be a recovery thing and not a full blown Windows CD. You have a legal key (there should be a sticker on PC/Laptop) so all is as it should be. The idea of not giving you a full disc is to more or less force you into going back to them to get stuff sorted out if it goes bang, may still be worth contacting MS and explain you've only got a recovery disc and see what they say

Its full blown, I've reinstalled XP a few times. Sounds like everything is above board so I'll give MS a ring.

Cheers!

Wocka Chocka Chum

Skub:
Right that's it,thread closed. Nowt cooler than pingu.

AlexDangerfield

16/03/2006 at 14:21

xp seems to balls up after a while and need a fresh reinstall, one gets used to this over time..it's windows innit?

However I'm about to get a mac with x as I have had enough...

Alex. ver1.1

pingu

16/03/2006 at 14:33

AlexDangerfield wrote

xp seems to balls up after a while and need a fresh reinstall, one gets used to this over time..it's windows innit?

However I'm about to get a mac with x as I have had enough...

Alex. ver1.1

I need a working computer and you're banging on about your lunch. Well eat your burger and eggs (I fcking hate txt spk) and get back to me with a real suggestion

Wocka Chocka Chum

Skub:
Right that's it,thread closed. Nowt cooler than pingu.

AlexDangerfield

16/03/2006 at 14:54

pingu wrote

I need a working computer and you're banging on about your lunch. Well eat your burger and eggs (I fcking hate txt spk) and get back to me with a real suggestion

Calm down dear, no need to get :angry cartoon: you sounded like you had reached a sensible conclusion, ie contact ms direct!!! (as opposed to a bike forum....) just to placate you I had the same problem and MS told me my xp disc was not verifiable despite having the disc in my hand (I wanted to install security pack 2) now go and do some deep breaths.

good luck anyway.

A.

pingu

16/03/2006 at 15:02

AlexDangerfield wrote

Calm down dear, no need to get :angry cartoon: you sounded like you had reached a sensible conclusion, ie contact ms direct!!! (as opposed to a bike forum....) just to placate you I had the same problem and MS told me my xp disc was not verifiable despite having the disc in my hand (I wanted to install security pack 2) now go and do some deep breaths.

good luck anyway.

A.

Bleedin Mac users, so laid back they don't even rise

Cheers fella, fingers crossed that MS aren't so shirty with me.
But I doubt it somehow

Wocka Chocka Chum

Skub:
Right that's it,thread closed. Nowt cooler than pingu.

AlexDangerfield

16/03/2006 at 15:17

No worries, I have xp at home remember so I well understand your justifiable rage!! fingers crossed for ya etc.

A.

Jack

16/03/2006 at 19:34

AlexDangerfield wrote

xp seems to balls up after a while and need a fresh reinstall.....

And that is a comment I can never understand, same as Windows keeps crashing

A PC I have at home (main one amongst a few) has XP Pro, its been in almost constant use for three years now, one BSoD and I caused that deliberately cause I knew the screen was different to NT and was curious

That PC has crashed once and it was the PSU, nothing to do with Windows. This laptop I'm using has XP Home on it along with my own AV & Firewall (Nortons got booted as soon as I got the laptop), over a year old, never crashed or let me down

I do wonder if this has got anything to do with me keeping them up to date with patches as needed, they are not auto downloaded as some need a reboot or maybe I'm just lucky but then I had the same with Win 95, 98 and NT hmmm

Ride safe Ride free

pingu

16/03/2006 at 21:44

My limited experience (as in, I've been using PCs for aaaages but I'm no systems admin so have a limited outlook on it) is that XP was when Windows came of age in terms of stability....in fact, full stop perhaps.

I've never had a BSoD with XP but I'm afraid I can't say the same about my own (not internet connected at the time) Win 95/98 and have witnessed it far too often on NT at various places of work. Then again, those networks were running 95, 98 and NT machines so perhaps not the best basis to work from.

Wocka Chocka Chum

Skub:
Right that's it,thread closed. Nowt cooler than pingu.

AlexDangerfield

16/03/2006 at 22:35

Jack wrote

And that is a comment I can never understand, same as Windows keeps crashing

A PC I have at home (main one amongst a few) has XP Pro, its been in almost constant use for three years now, one BSoD and I caused that deliberately cause I knew the screen was different to NT and was curious That PC has crashed once and it was the PSU, nothing to do with Windows. This laptop I'm using has XP Home on it along with my own AV & Firewall (Nortons got booted as soon as I got the laptop), over a year old, never crashed or let me down

I do wonder if this has got anything to do with me keeping them up to date with patches as needed, they are not auto downloaded as some need a reboot or maybe I'm just lucky but then I had the same with Win 95, 98 and NT hmmm

you may be one of the lucky ones or perhaps I am just unlucky (get the violins out) admittedly a lot of the gremlins do seem to make their presence known after something has been upgraded or installed/uninstalled so a certain amount of user error is highly likely in my case?

But despite this the pc (well windows as its the os not the bits) nowadays should not require one to trawl through the registry, learn dos commands and continually patch the bastard! Believe me I am no mac snob but in the work enviroment (ten years now) one seems able to throw more at them without them splitting at the seams, and tiger is a lovely GUI!

How is it going penguin?

A.

pingu

16/03/2006 at 22:46

AlexDangerfield wrote

you may be one of the lucky ones or perhaps I am just unlucky (get the violins out) admittedly a lot of the gremlins do seem to make their presence known after something has been upgraded or installed/uninstalled so a certain amount of user error is highly likely in my case?

But despite this the pc (well windows as its the os not the bits) nowadays should not require one to trawl through the registry, learn dos commands and continually patch the bastard! Believe me I am no mac snob but in the work enviroment (ten years now) one seems able to throw more at them without them splitting at the seams, and tiger is a lovely GUI!

How is it going penguin?

A.

I'm not at crisis point yet, the machine is behaving itself but I'll get on the case tomorrow wrt to a new install cd. Cheers.

<puffs chest up> I've paid my money I expect my service!

although, to be fair, I don't blame Mr Gates Esq for what's happened to my install cd...no doubt I spilt a glass and Kia-Ora is more corrosive than I thought.

Wocka Chocka Chum

Skub:
Right that's it,thread closed. Nowt cooler than pingu.

AlexDangerfield

16/03/2006 at 22:53

pingu wrote

I'm not at crisis point yet, the machine is behaving itself but I'll get on the case tomorrow wrt to a new install cd. Cheers.

<puffs chest up> I've paid my money I expect my service!

although, to be fair, I don't blame Mr Gates Esq for what's happened to my install cd...no doubt I spilt a glass and Kia-Ora is more corrosive than I thought.

hey thats abrasive stuff! I still mostly blame Thatcher...or my parents.

A.